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AIMS This study aimed to analyse nurses' perceptions of clinical leadership needs and compare their differences based on the sample's characteristics. Also, it aimed to compare nurses' perceptions of clinical leadership needs between nurses and nurse managers. BACKGROUND Various professional organisations have identified the need to develop clinical leaders. Clinical leadership is about having clinical expertise in specialised fields and having professionals involved in clinical care. However, worldwide, little emphasis is placed on the clinical leadership needs of nurses. METHODS Using STROBE (https://www.strobe-statement.org/index.php?id=available-checklists), a cross-sectional study was conducted in 2020 using a purposive sample of 349 Jordanian nurses who were surveyed using the CLeeNA instrument. Different descriptive and inferential statistics were used to analyse the data. The response rate in the current study was 69.8%. RESULTS The 7-point CleeNa scale was reduced into 3 categories 1 = "not important (1-3)," 2 = "Neutral (4)" and 3 = "highly important (5-7)." The total mean score of perceived CleeNa was 2.61(SD = 0.50) indicating "very important." The highest perceived mean score of the subscales was for "leadership and clinical practice." In contrast, the lowest perceived mean score of the subscales was "financial and service management." The total mean scores of perceived CleeNa were higher among married nurses, nurse managers, those who have a master degree or more, aged 35 years or more, had more than 4 years of nursing experience or/and more than 4 years of leadership experience, supervised more than 10 employees and were working in teaching hospitals. The total mean scores of perceived CleeNa scale and subscales of staff and team development, patient safety and risk management, and perceived standards of care were higher among nurse managers when compared with nurses. CONCLUSION AND RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE Results indicated that innovative clinical leaders are needed. A paucity of research identifies the extent to which clinical leadership is enacted in clinical nursing practice. Developing a clinical leadership programme is warranted to contribute positively to nurses' leadership roles and outcomes, patients' outcomes, and in turn, organisational outcomes.